Organizer Information
Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning (JCAL) is a multidisciplinary arts center founded in 1972, based in and serving the diverse community of Southeast Queens, where 2.3 million African-American, Caribbean-American, Indo-Asian, African, Latinx, Caucasian, Native American, and Indigenous artists and audiences live, work, and learn. JCAL is the only multidisciplinary arts center — and the only member of New York City's Cultural Institutions Group — located in Southeast Queens, and its mission is to offer quality visual and performing arts programs alongside accessible education programs that encourage participation in the arts.
The organization grew out of a 1960s revitalization effort along the Jamaica Avenue commercial corridor, restoring the former Queens Register of Titles and Deeds Building into what became the Jamaica Arts Center, later adding the restored Jamaica Performing Arts Center (JPAC) two blocks away. Today JCAL connects more than 58,000 neighbors, friends, parents, children, and artists annually to the borough's cultural life, and actively supports local artists through residency programs, professional development, presentations, and partnerships — including initiatives such as ARTWorks.
Title & Description
ARTWorks Fellowship 2026–2027
ARTWorks is a six-month Artist Fellowship Training Seminar Series run by JCAL, focused on career sustainability and amplifying the work of emerging, underrepresented visual artists. The Fellowship invites New York City-based visual artists to apply, with priority given to Queens-based BIIPOC (Black, Immigrant, Indigenous, People of Color) artists.
Over the course of the program, six selected artists treat their practice as a small business — identifying entrepreneurial and professional goals and generating a long-term plan to achieve them. Through fiscal and technical support, Fellows gain practical knowledge for navigating the aesthetic and socioeconomic structures of the New York art world while expanding their professional networks. Fellows take part in regular cohort meetings coordinated by a Program Manager, attend at least six events in a Seminar Series covering topics such as artist copyright and contracts, building relationships with collectors, grant writing, and taxes and accounting for artists, and engage periodically with an established career artist serving as Artist Mentor. The Fellowship concludes with a two-month public group exhibition, accompanied by a catalogue, in JCAL's Miller and Community galleries.
Categories
- Visual Arts
- Fellowship
- Art Management
- Educations
- Mixed Media
- Multiple Disciplines
Eligibility
- Must reside in New York City (preferably Queens) or Long Island
- Must identify as BIIPOC (Black, Immigrant, Indigenous, People of Color)
- Top priority given to Queens-based artists of underrepresented communities
- Artists with multidisciplinary practices are welcome, with the understanding that ARTWorks focuses on visual artists working in traditional forms
- Must demonstrate clarity of concept in their work and strong evidence of craft
- Must possess a deep commitment to social practice in their work
- Must not have received major exposure via exhibitions, grants, or other residencies
- Must not be enrolled full- or part-time in any college degree or certificate program
- Past ARTWorks Fellows are ineligible
- Strong preference given to artists who demonstrate interest in and commitment to issues relevant to underrepresented communities of Queens and the greater New York City area
Program Benefits & Awards
- $5,000 stipend per Fellow, paid out over the course of the program
- Free studio space at JCAL (approximately 550 square feet, shared with other JCAL programs, available on an as-available basis)
- One 7' x 4' studio closet allotted per Fellow for storing projects and materials
- One free class at JCAL, available through the Program Manager on a space-available basis
- Participation in a two-month public group exhibition (with catalogue) in JCAL's Miller and Community galleries
- Regular cohort meetings, a Seminar Series of at least six events, and periodic engagement with an established Artist Mentor
- Opportunity to interact with previous ARTWorks Fellows for guidance and support, and to mentor future cohorts after completing the Fellowship
Application Fee
None
Application Requirements
- Work samples: six images (.jpg, .pdf, .png, .tiff only) OR two videos 3–5 minutes in length (.mp4, .mov, .wmv, Quicktime only); no password-protected files accepted
- One-page description of work samples — title, date, dimensions, and medium (for images), or title, date, duration, B&W/color, and silent/sound (for videos)
- Artist statement, maximum 300 words
- One professional reference, maximum 300 words
- CV with all relevant contact information
- One paragraph summarizing the applicant's expectations of ARTWorks
- All submitted materials must be original to and the sole property of the applicant, or the application will be disqualified
How to Apply?
Online Application
Key Dates
- Application Deadline: 13 July 2026
- First Round Notification: 3 August 2026
- Interviews: August 11–14, 2026
- Selected Fellows Notified: 21 August 2026
- Contract and Supporting Materials Due: 4 September 2026
- Public Announcement of Fellows: 18 September 2026
- ARTWorks 2026 Begins: 7 October 2026
- ARTWorks 2026 Exhibition Opens: 9 April 2027
- ARTWorks 2026 Ends: 18 June 2027
Location
Jamaica, Queens, New York City, United States
Additional Details
- Fellows will be selected by a jury that evaluates all submissions without obvious identifiers (blind review)
- JCAL states its institutional commitment to serving people of all races, colors, religions, languages, gender identities, sexual orientations, national origins, ages, disabilities, socioeconomic statuses, marital statuses, and other differences
- Demographic information is collected internally by JCAL solely to determine program eligibility and for grant reporting purposes
- Major support for ARTWorks is provided by the Jerome Foundation, with additional support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Mellon Foundation, and the Howard Gilman Foundation; JCAL also acknowledges support from City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, City Council Member Nantasha Williams, the Office of the Mayor through the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, and seasonal visual arts support from Con Edison
- JCAL's core service area is Southeast Queens; when selecting artists, priority is given first to those who live or practice in Southeast Queens, then to artists from throughout Queens, then from the Greater New York City area and beyond